Jodi Fernandez, a high-school humanities teacher, highlights the use of Maslow's hierarchy of needs to enhance literary analysis and empathy in the classroom. By addressing both students' and teachers' needs, Fernandez creates a supportive learning environment, exemplified through a unit on Richard Wright's "Black Boy," where students analyze character development and human behavior.

The use of sight words in early education is being scrutinized as the science of reading movement emphasizes phonics instruction. While sight words are often taught through memorization, experts like Kari Kurto of the Reading League advocate for phonics to help children recognize words automatically, and Tim Shanahan, an emeritus professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, suggests integrating high-frequency words into regular instruction, acknowledging the challenge of phonetically irregular words.

California students are performing worse in literacy, with only 47% meeting English standards in 2023-2024 compared to 49% in 2015-2016, prompting the introduction of targeted interventions. In 75 of the state’s lowest-performing schools, a phonics-based reading program improved student achievement at $1,144 per pupil annually, offering a more cost-effective solution than class size reductions or broader spending increases.

Library media assistants in the Salem-Keizer School District in Oregon are voicing frustration over increased workloads that limit their ability to promote reading. The number of classes they supervise has doubled in some schools to accommodate more teacher prep time, leaving little time for book-related activities.

Wildfires in Southern California have forced the closure of 335 schools, affecting more than 211,000 students, as educators step up to provide support and shelter. Educators are working to support displaced students and families, even as some have lost their own homes, and are providing emotional support to students affected by the wildfires, recognizing the trauma and uncertainty they face.

Literacy coaches are helping Michigan third-graders at Wayne-Westland Community Schools to improve their literacy through targeted teacher support and individualized student strategies. The district has seen improvements in reading proficiency and math comprehension by addressing pandemic learning gaps with tools like small group sessions, peer-to-peer learning and tailored reading plans.

Colorado has seen a decline in the number of children with significant reading deficiencies for the third consecutive year, although numbers remain above pre-pandemic levels, according to an evaluation of the READ Act by WestEd presented to the state education board. The evaluation highlights the impact of evidence-based strategies, teacher training and literacy grants, and the state aims to boost the percentage of third-grade students reading at grade level from 42% in 2024 to 60% in 2028.

The Pennsylvania Literacy Coalition was formed to address low reading proficiency among students. Only one-third read proficiently by fourth grade — a number even lower in Philadelphia. The coalition advocates for $100 million for evidence-based literacy training and early screening. Philadelphia has also implemented a new curriculum focused on the science of reading.